Merci
Thank you so much!
Hello, friends,
With the launch of The Parisian Chapter, May has been an exciting month. Thank you for your kind words of congratulations and for your support! I appreciate the photos, emails, and posts on social media as well as seeing so many smiling faces in the audience. Un grand merci to Penelope Fletcher, proprietor of the Red Wheelbarrow Bookstore, who has supported me from my debut novel in 2009. I don’t know what Parisian writers would do without her.
On the evening of the launch, my husband Eddy was the MVP. After working an eight-hour shift, he schlepped the cheese platters and water bottles, constructed the canopy tent, asked questions after the talk, and served the champagne.
The book is so dear to my heart that I don’t quite know how to describe it. In 2010, I started writing, inspired by snippets of library life. I was also inspired by losing someone I considered my dearest friend. I didn’t understanding her sudden distance or what I’d done wrong. This book is for anyone who has lost a friend or fought to save a friendship. The heart of my novel The Paris Library is the relationship between Margaret and Odile. They both made mistakes and hurt each other. The heart of The Parisian Chapter is not only friendship, but also how we come together and how we work together to save the things that matter to us. The way we treat each other — whether friends or strangers — defines us. This is true of families, businesses, and countries.
In early drafts of The Paris Library, I was writing towards an end in which my main character Odile died. For many years, the last scene of the novel was her death. It was on a writing retreat at a convent in Bruges with fellow author Anne Marsella that I had a “flash” (something that has only happened to me twice in my twenty-year writing career) that Odile would live and reunite with her friend Margaret. After this moment, I no longer intended the end of The Paris Library to be the end of their story. In The Parisian Chapter, I’m grateful to give the two friends a short encore.
Anne Marsella and I have gone on retreats in convents throughout the years. They cost about fifty dollars per day, including food. This time, we splurged on a writing retreat at the Creative Mill, with host Kate Kemp-Griffin and facilitator Jami Bernard. We wrote, took long walks, ate delicious meals, and shared what we were working on with a great group of writers. Part of the four-day retreat was turning our phones off, which made me nervous. I usually start my day by checking for messages. The retreat changed this habit for me. Now I journal first and wait a few hours to pick up my phone. It was good to reset.
It was a great month to see some author friends passing through Paris. I had a great time chatting with Cara Black and the members of the tour that she co-organized. Early in my career when I was struggling to believe that I would ever be published, Cara spoke to a writing class I was taking. I’ll never forget her words of encouragement. I loved her latest novel Huguette, which is set in the murky days following World War II.
Last autumn, I had champagne with Patricia Sands and Deborah Bine and came away from the afternoon thinking these writers knew how to live. I was thrilled to see them again and to receive a copy of Patricia’s latest, The French Effect. The first pages whisked me away to snowy days when everything felt possible.
I was very excited to meet Kristin Harmel in person. I consider her my “cover girl” because her endorsements grace the covers of The Paris Library and The Parisian Chapter. She’s inundated with requests from hundreds of writers, so I feel very lucky that she took time during a research and birthday trip to meet for breakfast and attend my launch. I can’t wait to dive into her latest book, Meet Me in Paris.
I was very happy to see Meg Waite Clayton, author of the brilliant Typewriter Beach. She was one of the first people to interview me when my debut came out, and I so appreciate her kindness.
In Basel, Eddy and I visited the Cézanne exhibit at the Beyeler Foundation. It was moving to learn that he painted the same mountain 87 times, a reminder that we all need to work hard to master a passion. The museum offered paint, brushes, and canvases so Eddy and I tried our hand at painting. It was fun and surprisingly relaxing. Afterwards, we got to hang our watercolors on the wall.
On June 6 at 4 p.m., I look forward to returning to Bill & Rosa’s Book Room at 42 rue du Chemin Vert in Boulogne-Billancourt to present The Parisian Chapter. I hope you’ll join us!
Thank you for reading my newsletter and my novels. Your support keeps me going!
My best,
Janet
Hello Janet, What a fabulous reading and party you and Penelope hosted at The Red Wheelbarrow Bookstore for the launch of The Paris Chapter! You reminded me of Charles Dickens touring the United States, performing his characters. You lit up the room with your characters' voices and your beautiful spirit. Such a memorable evening!
Wow! Your month was so full. Again, that you for sharing such great photos, I love that you and Eddy are such talented artists!